The smoke from the fires to the north and east are still causing problems here. Yesterday afternoon, the trip home showed about 1 mile visibility with temps around 106-108. Walking around this is like walking in hot fog. I’m getting a bit of throat irritation from the smoke, even through I am staying inside. I only go outside to get to the car and from the car to the house.

Today, the smoke is not as thick here at the office. But a look outside shows that the sunshine is not bright, it’s a dull brown. You can see it in the sun patterns on the ground. Visibility here is a couple of miles.

What is needed is a good breeze to blow all this smoke out of the valley. But that’s a Catch-22. More wind helps the fire spread faster. But all that smoke is stopping the air assets from fighting the fire. They need more wind to increase the visibility so they can fly water and retardant drops. But more wind means more erratic fire behavior.

What we really need is a good series of rain storms to damp down the fire and smoke. But that’s not in the forecast. The weather dweebs are predicting 105-100 today and tomorrow, with 95-100 starting Saturday. But not much wind to help blow out the smoke.

In the meantime, the area around Paradise CA is still threatened, with upwards of 10,000 people displaced. And the two other big fires in the Foresthill wilderness area (north-east of Sacramento) have merged together.

Doesn’t look good for us air-breathers.